People suffering from lymphoedema – in many cases resulting from the surgical treatment of neoplasms – recover in the newly opened Lymphoedema Treatment Unit in Ustroń Center for Oncological Rehabilitation and Lymphology.
Działalność Oddziału, pierwszego tego rodzaju w kraju, mogli poznać w sobotę dziennikarze.
Until now, patients suffering from lymphedema – a long-term, progressive disease, in many cases resulting from the removal of lymph nodes after cancer – were forced to travel abroad because it was difficult for them to find help in the country. Meanwhile, many of them this disease does not allow them to function normally. Some people cannot walk, others only have one hand.
It is for such people that at the beginning of the year, the first stationary unit in the country for patients suffering from lymphedema was established at the Ustroń Center for Oncological Rehabilitation and Lymphology, and a special treatment program was developed, approved by the national rehabilitation consultant.
This type of treatment is already carried out in Poland, but on an outpatient basis, it is the first inpatient ward, Dr. Alina Marzec, the head of the ward, told PAP.
We also dealt with the treatment of lymphoedema at the Ustroń Center for Oncological Rehabilitation and Lymphology, but seeing great needs, we made attempts to organize such a department – she added.
Recently, the first group of 20 patients was admitted. It is not only people who have undergone cancer treatment, as lymphedema can have various causes. According to the assurances of the employees of the Center, these people are treated according to the best European methods.
Certified therapists for 28 days with manual lymphatic drainage, compression therapy, pressure massages, as well as through repeated exercises, bring back to life inefficient limbs. Treatment is reimbursed by the National Health Fund as part of systemic rehabilitation.
Dr. Marzec pointed out that 28 days of intensive treatment in the hospital is just the beginning of the therapy. It must be continued after the patient has been discharged from the hospital. He should continue to use compression therapy in the form of compression garments. The hospital treatment itself should be repeated, e.g. every year. The effect of these treatments should be the recovery of the limb’s efficiency.
The Ustroń Oncological Rehabilitation and Lymphology Center specializes in the rehabilitation of women after mastectomy. The treatment includes physiotherapeutic procedures (including hydrotherapy, massage, kinesiotherapy), psychotherapy, education in the field of anti-cancer diet and preventive training against edema. (PAP)